Evelina Isobel Sydney

Born 27 November 2010. Lots of pics and details to follow once we have Internet.

Progress

With the news from my consultant today that I am 2-3cm dilated, I go to sleep wondering if tomorrow is the day I will get to meet Baby Girl. My consolation prize if not will be our new house which we move into tomorrow afternoon.

41 weeks

It’s now one week past my due date and I’m still here waiting for our baby to arrive. To say I am getting impatient would be understating things but with the impending house move (tomorrow is packing day, Friday we move) we have more than enough on our plate to keep us distracted.

Over the last two days, my physical discomfort has become much more pronounced and it hurts to pretty much do anything. If I stay on my feet too long, it hurts. If I sit or lie for too long, it hurts. My nasty cold sores from last week were cleared up by a course of anti-viral medicine which finished yesterday but already I fear I have the tingly feeling returning which mean I might have another bout about to attack. My body just can’t fight while Baby Girl is still inside.

Tomorrow, I have an appointment at the hospital with the consultant and he will book me in to be induced next week which whilst necessary if I haven’t had the baby by then, is still not my preferred option since I have yet to hear about a ‘good’ labour following inducement. I know that no labour is ‘good’ but at least a natural start gives you the best chance of avoiding too much intervention.

So this will be either my last or my penultimate week by week post. I feel like I have been pregnant forever but at the same time, it has gone by in the blink of an eye. I am trying to stay calm to keep my andrenaline levels down but who am I kidding? I am so freaking excited about becoming a mama and meeting our baby girl, it’s not even funny.

Nothing doing

4 days overdue and nothing happening yet…  come on, Baby Girl, we don’t have all week.

40 weeks

So here we are – Due Date has arrived.  It’s been a rather tumultuous week to say the least.  Our house move is currently teetering on the brink of collapse and waiting by the phone for the solicitor’s news is pretty excruciating. I know logically that the most important thing is our baby and the house comes second but it’s very hard to stay calm.

The stress brought on a cold sore on Sunday – the first I have had in two years – and that sent me into a mini-meltdown as I was desperate for Baby Girl to wait until it had healed.  Cold sores are dangerous for babies and it would have meant I won’t be able to kiss her if she is born while I still have it.  Thankfully, it well on the way to being healed so hopefully by the time she arrives, it should not be problem.  I can’t see her arriving today despite having some Braxton Hicks contractions throughout the last week or so.  In fact, I can’t imagine going into labour at all.

Generally, I have been well though although sleep is a problem – I can’t fall asleep at the moment due to my discomfort (as a lady in a shoe shop pointed out to me, I’m ‘massive’) but I am sure it is also the worry about the house and the baby’s arrival.  I have also had some pulsating tinnitus which is a bit distracting – a whooshing heartbeat in my left ear which comes and goes.

It’s a shame that this post is so downbeat – I truly am so excited to meet our little girl and I know that in the long-term, none of this house nonsense will matter.  If we can’t move, then we still have a lovely home and whilst we will have lost money, we are lucky enough that it won’t ruin us.  Looking on the bright side is just a bit tricky when you are tired, uncomfortable, hormonal, emotional and home alone with nothing but property programmes on TV!

Nursery Bunting

Nursery Bunting | all five horizons.

Blanket for Baby Girl

Blanket for Baby Girl | all five horizons.

Procedure

I’ve just been to my midwife appointment and I was pleased that I was offered a procedure designed to hurry things along a  little.  I’ve got three words for you: stretch and sweep.  EUW.  That is most certainly NOT the most pleasant experience I have had so far this pregnancy and by the sounds of it, it didn’t do very much.  If you have no idea what I am talking about, then, lucky you.  The midwife uses her fingers to have a wiggle about (you know, Up There).  It doesn’t sound like things are ready quite yet so I think I’ll be having another S&S next week.  Oh joy.

39 weeks

39 weeks… that’s just scary.  Last night, I started getting a cramping pain in my lower abdomen which would last for about 3 minutes and occurred every 30-40 minutes.  After the first couple of times it happened, I thought that maybe MAYBE this was Something so I started keeping track of the time and sure enough, every half hour, the cramping would occur.  On the fourth bout, I mentioned to Rich and my brother (who had come over for dinner) that there was a slight possibility that I had gone into labour.  My brother made a fairly hasty exit while I ran a bath.

An hour later and the cramps had not really let up but I was still pretty unsure if these were contractions or just a tummy ache.  Rich hurriedly grabbed the last minute items for the hospital bag and then we went to bed.  I managed to get to sleep although the discomfort continued throughout the night.  By morning, it was as if nothing had happened and I felt decidedly disappointed!  Rich, on the other hand, felt decidedly knackered since he had a very restless and worry-filled night (ironically, despite the discomfort, I slept better last night than I have for days!).

So I am no nearer to meeting Baby Girl unless these were some early indications of labour which I am now doubting more and more due the complete lack of any rumblings today at all.

Rich proved he is the bees knees yesterday by arranging for me to go to a beauty salon tomorrow for a deluxe manicure, pedicure and mummy-to-be massage.  I can’t wait.  The house situation has been complicated this week by our buyer and this has added to our already elevated stress levels.   It is looking very unlikely that we will be exchanging contracts on Friday after all but at least that means our move date edges further away from the due date which I suppose is a good thing. A relaxing day being pampered is exactly what I need.

38 weeks

Of the eight couples (including us) in our NCT antenatal group, 3 have already had their babies – all early.  Despite this, I have this overwhelming feeling that it just isn’t going to happen for me – I can’t imagine going into labour.  I think I am going to stay pregnant forever!  Funny thing is, at this stage of the pregnancy, I think I am meant to be desperate for the end and so fed up with being pregnant but I am not either of these things.

Don’t get me wrong, I am so excited about meeting my baby but I am also pretty anxious. Putting aside for a moment the terrifying prospect of getting this baby out of me (on which I am trying not to dwell), in the next few weeks, I am going to have to become a mum, responsible for raising a baby and preferably not scaring her for life by doing that badly. We also have to exchange and complete contracts on our house move – nothing is settled before we exchange and that cannot come soon enough (it looks set to be 12th November).  I am trying very hard to focus on the fact that by this time next month, we will have a new house and a new baby.  Blows. My. Mind.